1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a combination tool for opening anti-freeze bottles. The tool is intended to be used to open bottles or containers of gas line anti-freeze. Normally these bottles have a small cap which needs to be pried off, and a seal which needs to be broken before the anti-freeze is poured into the automobile gas tanks. The first embodiment involves a small hand-held opener mounted on a key-ring and which includes a first member and a second member connected to a handle for performing the prying and piercing function. The second embodiment includes a first member for removing the cap and a second member for puncturing and removing the seal under the cap, both members mounted on a flat plate or board, together with a container for collecting removed caps and seals.
2. Description of Prior Art
Bottle openers are of course known in the prior art. U.S. Design Patent No. Des. 126,577 issued Apr. 15, 1941 to Herman Erxleben discloses a receptacle opener having two different structural arrangements located at one end of the opener, one for prying a cap off a bottle, and the second for cutting through a top of a tin or metal can, the other end of the opener including an adjustable chain loop and what appears to be a series of saw teeth. There is no disclosure therein of using any of the disclosed components for piercing and prying off a seal at the top of a container.
U.S. Pat. No. 706,911 issued Aug. 12, 1902 to William L. Dunham, discloses a tool for removing caps from bottles, the tool being mountable on a key-ring. The disclosed configuration of the tool inherently prevents using the tool to also pry off a seal located under the cap, and there is no disclosure or suggestion of such a use by Dunham.
U.S Pat. No. 900,480 issued Oct. 6, 1908 to August A. Busch discloses a wall mounted bottle opener for removing bottle caps. There is no disclosure of structure capable of piercing a seal that may be located under the bottle cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,040,564 issued Oct. 8, 1912 to Arthur H. Merrill discloses a compound tool which may be used as either a wrench or a bottle cap remover, again with no disclosure of structure that would be effective to puncture and remove a seal disposed under the bottle cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,684,285 issued Sep. 11, 1928 to John H. McDonald discloses a wall mounted bottle cap remover coupled with a receptacle for collecting the removed caps. No structure is disclosed which could be used to pierce and remove a seal from the bottle.
U.S. Pat. No. 1.934,594 issued Nov. 7, 1933 to Henry J. Edlund discloses a container opener which may be used to either remove a bottle cap or to pry off a lid from a can. There is no disclosure of structure which could be used to pierce and remove a seal located under the bottle cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,106,639 issued Jan. 25, 1938 to George B. Jenkinson discloses a cap remover for containers and the like comprising two cooperating elements which selectively may be used in two different ways to remove a cap, neither of which is disclosed to be effective to remove seals located under the cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,118,159 issued May 24, 1938 to William H. Castner discloses a combination can punch and cap lifter which requires a complex configuration in order to achieve the function of removing a bottle cap or puncturing a hole in the top of a can. Further, while a can top is pierced, there is no disclosure in Castner of removing a seal.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,454,531 issued Nov. 23, 1948 to Ralph Van Trine, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,461,040 issued Feb. 8, 1949 to Armand Di Geronimo, disclose wall mounted bottle cap removers without seal piercing and removal. Van Trine also discloses a wall mounted receptacle for removed bottle caps.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,631 issued Aug. 7, 1984 to James E. Barnes et al. discloses a multipurpose opener having structure to remove bottle caps and to open so-called pop-tops. There is no disclosure by Barnes et al. of any structure designed to pierce and remove a seal located below the bottle caps.